Righteous God,
We, your praying Church, joyfully recognize you as Lord. We praise you with our voices, our instruments, our hearts and spirits. We know the word of the Lord is right and true; you are faithful in you do. Your spoken word created the heavens and the earth; you commanded and the world stood firm. You love righteousness and justice; you foil the plans of the nations and thwart the purposes of evil. We know the plans of you, Lord, the the purposes of your heart through all generations, stand firm forever. We pray for and claim blessings upon the people you chose for your inheritance, the nations whose God is the Lord. You see all mankind; your eyes are on those who fear you, those whose hope is in your unfailing love. We know it is not by might or power, but by your Spirit the mountains of unrighteousness, corruption, and injustice in this nation will be removed. So, we pray that your praying Church and your angels, under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, would cause the roots of those mountains to be destroyed. Anywhere and everywhere there is corruption, fraud, injustice, lawlessness, or unrighteousness, cut off that root and shine your Light of Life into that space. We wait in hope for the Lord, our help and shield, because we trust in your holy name and rejoice in your victory over the forces of evil and darkness. May your unfailing love be with us as we put our hope in you. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.
Psalm 33
1 Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous;
it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
2 Praise the Lord with the harp;
make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.
3 Sing to him a new song;
play skillfully, and shout for joy.
4 For the word of the Lord is right and true;
he is faithful in all he does.
5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of his unfailing love.
6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
their starry host by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea into jars[a];
he puts the deep into storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the people of the world revere him.
9 For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
10 The Lord foils the plans of the nations;
he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever,
the purposes of his heart through all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people he chose for his inheritance.
13 From heaven the Lord looks down
and sees all mankind;
14 from his dwelling place he watches
all who live on earth—
15 he who forms the hearts of all,
who considers everything they do.
16 No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
18 But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
19 to deliver them from death
and keep them alive in famine.
20 We wait in hope for the Lord;
he is our help and our shield.
21 In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.
22 May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
even as we put our hope in you.
“Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.” (Zech. 4:6 ESV)